TONIGHT: One Night Stand fallout, including Triple H retaining and Randy Orton’s injury. Plus, I’m sure we’ll get more on the McMahon Million-Dollar Mania. No matches listed on WWE.com.

-WWE Open.

-Raw Open.

-Raw is LIVE and in HD from Bakersfield, California. The champion, Triple H, came out, and he reiterated that the Age of Orton never existed. He took some shots at Orton, who he said is watching this from a hospital room. Triple H said he doesn’t know who’s next and doesn’t care....which is the cue for John Cena, and the former champ came out. Cena said the future is now, and he must be talking about himself. Cena got the crowd fired up and asked Triple H was ready to fight. Triple H said a big star in the industry once said to him, “if you want some, come get some.” Before Cena could “get some,” Jeff Hardy’s music hit and the Rainbow Warrior came to the ring. Hardy said three men on Raw won matches last night, and they’re all in the ring. Cena and Hardy proposed they fight for the right to face Triple H, but Mr. McMahon interrupted on the video screen and plugged his million-dollar give-away. McMahon thought Trips should defend the title at Night of Champions against the winner of Hardy vs. Cena tonight. I think he just took credit for Jeff’s idea. That makes it official I suppose.

-Also tonight, the I.C Title is on the line as Chris Jericho faces JBL. So JBL earned a title shot by losing to Cena last night?

[Break]

(1) Mr. Kennedy vs. Paul BurchillBurchill backed out of the match, saying he had to help Katie Lea prepare for her women’s match later on tonight. But he found a replacement....

(1) Mr. Kennedy vs. UmagaUmaga had his ribs taped and went right after Kennedy when the bell rang. Kennedy tried to come back but was dumped with a Samoan drop...Umaga couldn’t capitalize due to the rib injury though. Kennedy got sent to the outside and Umaga went to jump on him but ended up hitting the announce table. He failed to make it back in the ring before the ten-count expired.

Winner: Kennedy by count-out, at 2:05.

Kennedy didn’t have time to celebrate his win, as he was attacked by Burchill right after the match ended.

-Some security personnel were carrying a large box filled with a lot of cash. Mr. McMahon’s Millions will be explained next.

[Break]

-The Chairman came to the stage as security stood on the floor around it. McMahon called for a million dollars in cash to come out, and it even had it’s own theme song. The money was transferred by a couple guys into another case as McMahon warned the fans not to do anything crazy. This certainly is thrilling TV. McMahon said he might give away different sums of money at different times, and by the end of next week, he’ll have given away $1 million. All we have to do to be in the running is to register at wwe.com (boos from the fans). McMahon then asked why he would give away $1 million in cash on Raw. He gave some reasons, then said he wants to attract more people to enjoy what we enjoy every Monday night (in laymans terms: RATINGS). He said there are some people who wouldn’t be caught dead watching Raw, then called them elitists and snobs and said they look down on us fans. He said people who don’t watch Raw won’t let us into their club, but it’s okay, because we don’t want them in ours. Vince implored the fans to yell, cheer, boo and do whatever to show those people what they’re missing. Vince said next week, it’s all about the money. This must be the kind of speech Vince gives to talent about the media, the “Them vs. Us” mentality. I’ve never seen (or heard) such desperate pandering on Raw.

-#1 Contender’s Match, John Cena vs. Jeff Hardy, is yet to come.

[Break]

(2) Santino Marella & Carlito vs. Cody Rhodes & Hardcore HollyCody said they couldn’t start the match because there was no timekeeper. He then said there was a special timekeeper assigned for this match. Rowdy Roddy Piper then came out. I give him a B for his bell-ringing abilities. Santino started things with Cody, who hit a cross-body for a near-fall. Lawler said the last time JR opened his wallet, Ric Flair was named most promising newcomer. The heels worked over Cody, but Santino missed a second-rope head-butt. Holly tagged in and fed some right hands to Santino. Piper tripped up Santino as Marella ran the ropes. Holly set Marella up for the Alabama Slam, but Carlito kicked Holly, leading to Marella getting a roll-up win.

Winners: Carlito & Santino, at 2:18. Fine tag action.

-Cena vs. Hardy is tonight, as well as Jericho vs. JBL.

[Break]

-Santino and Carlito were celebrating in the back. Todd Grisham came up to Santino and congratulated him for the win. Santino said he’s Italian, he has plenty of confidence. Santino said in honor of Jiminy the Kimmel, he had a Top 10 List of ways he’s going to beat Cousin Sal. Grisham told him that’s actually from Letterman. Marella then talked about the headline that the paper would say when he beat Sal. Grisham said Leno does the headlines. Marella then made a “for me to poop on” joke, only for Grish to say that’s from the dog on Conan. Grish said nevermind and thanks for the interview. As he walked away, Santino said, “Grisham, nice suit....for me to poop on. I am so the funny person.” Good times.

-Holly came into Rhodes’ locker room upset that Cody didn’t tell him about the Piper surprise. Holly said he’s the veteran of the team, he needs to know that stuff. After Holly left, Ted Dibiase Jr. walked in and said he’s three weeks away from choosing a partner to take the belts from Rhodes & Holly. The look on the soon-to-be-former champs’ faces will be priceless.

-JR and King talked to Jericho backstage. They asked about his reaction to Michaels being stretchered out. He briefly touched on it, then said he’s re-dedicating himself to defending the Intercontinental Title as often as possible. He then dedicated his match to Shawn Michaels. The match is next.

[Break]

(3) JBL vs. Chris Jericho, Intercontinental Title MatchJBL had some bruising on the throat from last night. Jericho had JBL in an arm-bar, but JBL got out and threw fists after fists at Jericho in the corner. Jericho got caught in a full nelson, but Y2J used leverage to his advantage by hitting a tornado DDT on JBL. He knocked down JBL a couple times, then hit a running clothesline in the corner. Jericho tried to cross-body JBL from the middle rope, but JBL caught him and landed a fall-away slam. Lariat missed, and Jericho dropkicked JBL out of the ring. On the outside, JBL landed a big boot to the shoulder of Jericho (looked like it grazed him). JBL grabbed a steel chair and pushed the ref, which earned him a DQ.

Winner: Jericho by DQ, at 5:18.

JBL got an enziguiri from Jericho, and landed throat-first on the chair, drawing some blood. Jericho picked up the chair and went to hit JBL, who was on the ground. Like last week though, he couldn’t bring himself to hit his fallen opponent.

-Cena vs. Hardy in a #1 contender’s match is still to come.

[Break]

(4) Beth Phoenix & Katie Lea vs. Melina & Mickie JamesKatie got some offense on Mickie, then Mickie gave her a hurricanrana. Mickie went to tag Melina, but Melina was staring at Beth and didn’t move. Mickie tried to get in her face, but Melina didn’t seem like she was all there. Beth tagged in and Melina screamed for a tag. Melina jumped on Beth and just street brawled with her. The crowd at it up. It even went to the outside. Melina though ran into a Beth clotheslien and was thrown against the side of the ring. Beth tagged Katie, but soon after, Melina was able to tag Mickie. James took out Beth then went to work on Katie. Thesz press off the top by Mickie. Katie caught Mickie with a boot to the face and knocked Melina off the apron. She shoved Mickie off on a DDT attempt and behind the ref’s back, Beth nailed Mickie, allowing Katie to get the pin.

Winners: Katie & Beth, at 3:28. Good, energetic match.

As Burchill celebrated with the winners, Kennedy attacked him. Burchill was able to get away before too much harm was done.

[Break]

Cryme Tyme came out. Shad had to keep JTG from going after the money. I noticed they adjusted CT’s theme music. And....I guess that’s all they were out there to do.

-The King tried to sign up for McMahon’s Millions, but got a 503 (Service Temporary Unavailable) warning. He ad libbed that so many people are trying to sign up, they’ve jammed the server.

(5) Lance Cade vs. Trevor MurdochI think Murdoch is seeing his own theme. The two brawled on the outside, and Trevor was back-dropped onto the floor. Cade kneed Murdoch’s head right against the ring-post. High knee-lift by Murdoch, followed by a boot to the face. Crowd started getting behind Murdoch late in the match. Murdoch tried to hit a double axe-handle off the top, but got a fist to the gut. Rock-bottom into a sit-down powerbomb by Cade for three.

Winner: Cade, at 2:22. Okay match to get the feud going (at least, I think).

-Jeff Hardy was backstage getting ready for his match with Cena tonight.

[Break]

-JR threw it to clips of Edge vs. Undertaker from last night. JR talked as if Taker was done.

-John Cena was backstage with Mickie, who was getting iced. Cena apologized for people thinking they’re a couple. He said he wanted to apologize for everyone’s gossiping. Cena returned Mickie’s thong that apparently she lost last night. This relationship is SO forced.

-Triple H sat down with his trademark bottle of water in front of a TV, getting ready to watch Jeff Hardy vs. John Cena, next.

[Break]

-Lawler finally got onto the web page to register for the Millions.

(6) Jeff Hardy vs. John Cena- #1 Contenders MatchThe two surveyed the crowd reactions before locking up, and also slapped hands in a sign of respect. Some security guards ran into the ring briefly, as I guess a fan was trying to get involved. They ended up wrangling him at ringside as the fans cheered. Lawler made a note about streaking, so the guy may have been naked. Cena and Hardy took a brief respite from their fight as the crowd cheered security. Side head-lock by Jeff Hardy. Hip-toss by Cena followed by a slam and an elbow for two. Snap suplex by Hardy for two, then he went into a chin-lock. Hardy landed on Cena on the outside of the ring as the show went to break.

[Break]

Hardy was flying around the ring after break, just missing a pin. So far it’s been lotsa cheers for both guys, but also some noticeable boos for Cena. Cena came back with a blockbuster for two. The roof is going to blow off the joint if Hardy wins. Hardy drove Cena face-first to the mat with a suplex. He missed the Swanton though. Cena started hitting his signature spots, including the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Hardy fought out of an FU attempt and hit some foreamrs to the face. Corner dropkick by Hardy, then dragged Cena to the middle of the ring for two. Whisper in the Wind for an incredibly near fall. Cena fought out of a Twist of Fate, and got Hardy up for the FU. Hardy held onto the ropes and was able to kick Cena coming back in. Hardy to the top, he hit a cross-body. Cena rolled through and picked Hardy up for the FU. He landed it and picked up the win.

Winner: Cena, at 13:44. Hot, hot match.

Triple H came out on the stage with the title belt. Cena walked up the ramp and gestured that the title would be his at Night of Champions. Trips held the belt over his head as the show ended.

If Cena doesn't regain the title at Night of Champions, does that provide justification to get rid of the spinning belt and replace it with a proper championship belt?Perhaps Jericho returned to save us from chairs.Since they have gone a few weeks without replacing Regal, perhaps they might actually leave the spot open for him. They haven't buried Hardy since his second strike.

Raw was pretty good. The Million Dollar give away is pretty dumb. Does Vince know that the best way to keep the new viewers in the next three weeks is to have 3 good shows? I did think it was funny when Vince took Hardy's idea and then acted like he thought of it. I wonder if this will be a long term gimmick. Except for the main event not a lot to talk about wrestling wise. The other matches were all good but very short. Main event was very good. Crowd loved Hardy. They didn't dislike Cena but liked Hardy more. Not sure Cena should have won. Couldn't Hardy main event a minor PPV? Give Cena a match at Summer Slam with HHH. Maybe Hardy will move to SD to take on Edge.

A quick browse of the rules would suggest that the Million Dollar Contest isn't open to non-Americans. For shame. Speaking of which, McMahon's promo went wayyyyyyy too long.

And, for the record, I'm very close to swearing off WWE programming, at least for a while. I hate that they're ignoring everything that's west of Ontario, especially when some of their hottest crowds are located here (Edmonton), Calgary, and Vancouver.

But I digress.

I'd like Mickie James/John Cena storyline more if they had even one iota of chemistry together. Sorry, John, you'll never be leading man in a romantic comedy.

Originally posted by redsoxnationSince they have gone a few weeks without replacing Regal, perhaps they might actually leave the spot open for him. They haven't buried Hardy since his second strike.

See, I've been meaning to ask about that for a while. I would had thought since he got suspended and 'fired' on-air, RAW would had layed off him in the storylines for a while. But instead, they keep mentioning him and even are building a feud between Paul Burchill and Mr. Kennedy over his ouster. So it seems that instead of cutting him out alltogether, the wwe writers are keeping his name warm in our heads until he comes back from the suspendion, maybe right back into a big push since RAW doesn't have too many big-tims heels (one less now that Orton's injured). Just wondering if I was the only one to notice that.

Other RAW thoughts:

- Who did Umanga fucked with to get jobbed like this the last month? I bet he can't wait for the draft to be switched, considering his luck lately.

- The million dollar giveaway is stupid as hell, especially after you look at the pize money. They're actually going to reward someone TWO DOLLARS for finishing in 6th place! I can see that poor guy having to pay some shipping cost to get that check for two bucks, too.

- My first at the Dibiase kid and I got to say, I'm impressed. That dude got the looks and is a million times better talker than Cody Rhodes. BTW, Cody, it's called 'timekeeper', not 'timemeeper'.

- Cade/ Murdoch was a really good, stiff looking match that I wish they would had given at more 5 more minutes to work on. Cade definitely looks like a star, so I can see why they split up the team, even though I liked them together.

- Jericho/ JBL was all right, but I'm still confused about what I'm supposed to think about Jericho. Am I supposed to cheer him on since he's now buddy-buddy with HBK and dedicated his match to him? Or am I supposed to believe he's going to turn heel and snaps at some poor foe one day with la silla?

- Cena/ Hardy was a good match after the first couple of minutes. Whatever happened outside the ring sure distracted the match for a while there, though. Nice staredown between Cena and HHH at the end.

I hate Cena and Mickie together. Cody Rhodes and Priceless Ted DiBiase have more palpable sexual tension. I think it was Scherer who said yesterday that Cena and Mickie a couple in real life now and Vince decided to make it storyline. That'll bode well.

The Beth vs. Melina feud is really clicking for me. I thought their I Quit match was the best match at One Night Stand. (I like watching Edge and Undertaker fall through tables as much as the next guy, but Beth and Melina WRESTLED and brought the psychology. The submission moves they used on each other were badass. Especially the cross armbreaker that Beth countered via dead lift into a power bomb. But ESPECIALLY the fold-Melina-like-an-accordion finisher.) Melina going psycho and wanting to kill Beth is outstanding. And Katie Lea vs. Mickie ain't too bad either. But Melina vs. Beth is where it's at. It's a deeply personal revenge issue and SETTLING PERSONAL ISSUES THROUGH VIOLENCE IS WHAT PRO WRESTLING IS ABOUT. Even the Kennedy and Burchill run-ins were great because they seem like they genuinely want to kill each other.

Conversely, what isn't great? The John Cena and Triple H mutual admiration society.

Cena: "I come to you not out of hate. I respect you. Please wrestle me for your championship title."Triple H: "Sure. Whatever. I don't care."Jeff Hardy: "I would also like to compete with you fine gentlemen for that prestigious championship title."Cena: "I would enjoy that immensely, good sir."Triple H: "Settle it amongst yourselves, friends. It doesn't matter to me."Cena: "I have defeated young Jeffrey. It is me you must contend with."Triple H: "Then I shall have at you at Night of Champions! Let us take off our shirts and wrestle like the Greeks of old."

Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you wanted my $40 at the end of month. I must have been mistaken.

Originally posted by CajunManAnybody try to register for this?? I'm getting some other website that is taking forever to download. This contest does have rules and disclaimers as well

Update

Okay I can get through now, looks like they fixed the technical problems. They also want your e-mail which will probably will get you a crap load of spam and junk along with the registration.

(edited by CajunMan on 2.6.08 2332)

(edited by CajunMan on 2.6.08 2333)

Forget the email being clogged with spam, you will be getting phone calls telling you to buy the upcoming PPV with the phone number you provide, and I wouldn't be shocked if Vince sold the mailing information provided to recoup some of the money.

The prizes are okay, until you get to 6th ... from the rules:6. Prizes: ONE (1) GRAND PRIZE: Two-hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check. TWO (2) FIRST PRIZES: Each consisting of two-hundred thousand dollars ($200,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check. ONE (1) SECOND PRIZE: One-hundred twenty five thousand dollars ($125,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check. ONE (1) THIRD PRIZE: Ninety-eight thousand dollars ($98,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check. ONE (1) FOURTH PRIZE: Seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check. ONE (1) FIFTH PRIZE: Fifty-one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight dollars ($51,998 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check. ONE (1) SIXTH PRIZE: Two dollars ($2.00 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check. Prizes are non-transferable and no substitution will be made except as provided herein at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute the prize for one of equal or greater value if the designated prize should become unavailable for any reason. Winner is responsible for all taxes and fees associated with prize receipt and/or use. Total value of all prizes: $1,000,000 USD. Odds of winning any prize depend on the number of eligible entries received during the Registration Phase up to five (5) minutes prior to the time selected by Sponsor for awarding that particular prize (that prize’s “Prize Pool”). Limit: One (1) Prize per person. The order prizes are actually awarded during the Event Phase shall be determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion (for example, the Sixth Prize may be awarded first, and the Grand Prize awarded fourth).